The Most Innovative Cities in Asia Pacific is a ranking based on a comprehensive study done by Solidiance. It identifies cities with its particular quirks that have created an effective innovation ecosystem needed by society and industry players to grow their business.

The movie!

During the process of this study, we encountered a lot of engaging quirks and fascinating insights about innovativeness in the Asia Pacific cities. Thriving to deliver the best depiction of innovation in the region, Solidiance complements this study with a short documentary movie. It features various innovative ecosystems in the region and interviews with C-level executives of major firms from various industry sectors as well as other cities' stakeholders (government, academics, artists) to provide different perspectives about innovation in the city.

Executive Summary

This study was conducted to identify the most innovative cities within the Asia Pacific region to help industry players assess the most attractive places where they can plant and grow their business. It is designed to determine whether a particular city has built an effective innovation ecosystem.

We use six main categories to measure each city’s level of innovativeness: human talent, knowledge creation, technology, society, government, as well as global integration. These key criteria are inspired by Richard Florida’s Creative Class & Creative Economy, which identifies the relationships between what a particular location has to offer and the amount of talent attracted to that same location.

Solidiance identified sixteen notable urban centers in Asia Pacific and included them in this study, and as a result of our comprehensive assessment and analysis, the Top 5 most innovative cities in Asia Pacific are as follows: Singapore, Sydney, Melbourne, Hong Kong, and Auckland. The Top 3 cities were very closely ranked and a “photoshoot” was needed to allocate the ‘Gold medal’ to Singapore. This means this ranking is likely to change in the future.

As we distinguish the study’s key takeaways further, we suggest that what makes a favorable innovation habitat is, a proper incorporation of factors across categories:

Rich availability of educated and skillful human talent, enabled by diversity and life amenity

Knowledge creation produced by the tertiary education institutes, firms, and government

Proper level of city livability and the tolerance that its society possesses towards deviant norms and failure, along with their ability to sustain culture and value

Technology advancement and innovation ecosystem facilitated by the government

Favorable regulatory framework set by the government to sustain the city system

Global integration and the city’s orientation towards the future indicated by a high level of the city’s connectivity and environmental sustainability

The culture of the city is what makes us different. If we are confident
about our culture, if we understand our culture, then that is the
foundation of our innovation and creativity.

METHODOLOGY And MEASUREMENTS

This study considers whether the city provides an optimal environment for innovation to dwell and thrive in the long term, as it is also becoming increasingly important to achieve sustainability.

HUMAN TALENT

Innovation is chiefly driven by human beings who are equipped with talents. At a city level, the diversity, openness and tolerance (along with the synchronization between all) are pivotal to enhance human talents that would spur innovation.

KNOWLEDGE CREATION

Human talent and new ideas are reinforced by educational systems. A city has to provide proper educational facilities to enable its citizens to obtain the required intelligence and creativity to innovate.

TECHNOLOGY

Technology is an important key for the city's growth which can be a benchmark of its development. It enables intellectuality improvement, economic growth, and supports optimal surrounding for society to thrive. It is both a tool to catalyse, as well as a product of innovation itself.

SOCIETY

The city is constituted by the society who shape, build, and develop it with the culture, value systems, and ideology they hold on to. Art and freedom of expression are to name a few which reflect the society's stance in allowing the emergence of new ideas and innovation.

GOVERNMENT

The city government plays an important role as the innovation controller. They set regulatory framework to support the system to operate and integrate as well as accommodate the society's needs through allocated funds and proper facilitation to build optimal ecosystem.

GLOBAL INTEGRATION

A city can prominently grow if it's able to keep up with the global pace. Being accessible, open to new changes/ideas, and distinguished from others are pivotal. It enhance the required information flow, competitiveness, and new opportunities that would catalyse innovation.